Need an old lens with a bit of 'character'

[simon_park3]

I'm unfamiliar with all the classic lenses - i have modern nikkors

which are as sharp as you can get - but sharpness isn't

everything, nor is coating - but would prefer to acquire something

that has a bit more of a 'signature look' for still life work in 4x5

150 or 210mm... i've heard that some Goerz lenses are

legendary, But these are very uncommon here in the UK. Any

ideas? Thanks

[ole_tjugen]

I'm unfamiliar with all modern lenses; I have "classics" which are as sharp as you can get instead. Goerz Dagor lenses are legendary, so are Zeiss Protars, Planars and Tessars, Voigtländer Heliars and APO-Lanthars, and the Cooke portrait which they are now making again.

 

I canæt really say that any of there have a "signature look", but the Heliar and APO-Lanthar are designed to look smooth, as in Cooke's modern offering. There's also the Wollensak Verito, another soft-focus lens.

 

If you point your browser over to the forum at f32.net you'll find a lot of discussions and even facts about many of these lenses.

[simon_park3]

Actually I might have found something like what i'm after:

www.cookeoptics.com

- Cooke Portrait PS945 Lens 229mm, f/4.5 for 4x5 Large Format

Photography

""The lens can be used with great success as a 'soft focus

portrait lens' but it really is much more. For the still life

photographer it represents a new tool that can add a different

tactile feel to black and white as well as color images. And for

the f64 purists: we are NOT talking pictorialism, no mush or fuzzy

imagery!" -- Per Volquartz

 

 

The PS945 lens is a versatile visioning tool: Wide open, at f/4.5,

you will see a beautiful glow in the highlights with no loss of

sharpness or resolution. (See the sample photos take with the

Better Light digital scanback system.) Stop down the lens to f/11

and higher and note the stunning look of the out of focus areas

of your image. The characteristics of this lens are unlike any

other."

[peter_black1]

Since you are in the UK, you might like to look <A HREF="http://www.pbpa.co.uk/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&p=103"> here </A> and down near the bottom you'll find a very cheap Kodak.

[John Crowe]

I'm afraid my visual vocabulary does not include these nuances YET, but I do rather respect the level headedness that my Zeiss 135mm f4.5 from the 1930's has. He manages to keep my emotions in check and makes me follow a strict regimen of process when I am shooting with him on my 4x5 Speed Graphic. His younger cousin, the Schneider SA 65mm f8 can be all that and down right demanding to boot! Quite a dark character that one. But he certainly can make me look good. The ol' wholly 90mm has a terrific sense of humour and I never know what shutter speed I am going to get from him, which certainly makes life very interesting. The Zeiss 300mm f4.5 process lens is just an ol' sod and not easy to please at all. Always learching one way or t'other when the Speed's shutter goes off, just to bug me! The 210mm f5.6 process lens is quite proud of her huge multi bladed aperture but she is a bit stiff and cranky and gets ticked off because I don't take her anywhere. Gosh, don't tell her she's old either!

 

 

Oh well we can choose our friends but we are stuck with family. Perhaps one day they will gain the patience to really teach me what they can do.

[william_whitaker1]

While very soft wide open, the Wollensak Verito becomes reasonably sharp when stopped down and retains a smoothness which is flattering to some subjects. See <a href=http://wfwhitaker.com/verito.htm>wfwhitaker.com/verito.htm</a>.

[andrewlamb]

Simon,

 

The Cooke Portrait is great but it is also mind bogglingly expensive. Check

out Robert White for prices.

 

How about an 8" f2.9 Dallmeyer Pentac? They're pretty cheap and common.

Used wide open they might prove interesting.

[simon_park3]

The Wollensak Verito sounds ideal - thanks William- it seems to

do exactly what the Cooke lens does - probably at a fraction of

the price, any idea where I can get one!?

[william_whitaker1]

Simon,<P>

 

Try the usual auction site suspects. Seth often has one or two at <a href=http://www.cameraeccentric.com/>cameraeccentric.com</a>. For some reason the shorter focal lengths seem to demand a higher price. The lens in any focal length definitely has character.<P>

 

Andrew said what I was thinking, but was holding back. It's great that Cooke is seeing fit to reintroduce some old designs to a limited market. But you might want to test the waters first with a less expensive alternative until you see for sure which direction you're headed.<P>

 

Don't forget that the lens is but one element of the overall equation. Lighting is another important consideration.

[jason_greenberg_motamedi]

Simon,

 

MW Classic Cameras (http://www.mwclassic.com/) in London often has a great selection

of vintage and hard to find glass. Prices are usually quite reasonable, which seems more

and more to be an oddity for dealers of old glass.

[michael_briggs2]

<i>"For some reason the shorter focal lengths seem to demand a higher price."</i>

 

<p>Probably when these lenses were made, 8x10 or other formats larger than 4x5 were more popular for portraits than 4x5. Consequently lenses of preferred focal lengths for 4x5 are less common. Now 4x5 is the most common LF format and so the demand for the less common shorter focal lengths is higher than for longer focal lengths.</p>

[andrewlamb]

Another vote for mw classic. I think they're terrific. I note they currently have a

Kershaw soft focus lens for sale at 175 pounds. (Can't seem to be able to use

pound sign!)